Of Mice and Men

Of Mice and Men

By John Steinbeck

13 ratings 12 reviews 18 followers
Interest LevelReading LevelReading A-ZATOSWord Count
Grades 9 - 12Grades 10 - 9Z4.529572
They are an unlikely pair: George is "small and quick and dark of face"; Lennie, a man of tremendous size, has the mind of a young child. Yet they have formed a "family," clinging together in the face of loneliness and alienation. Laborers in California's dusty vegetable fields, they hustle work when they can, living a hand-to-mouth existence. For George and Lennie have a plan: to own an acre of land and a shack they can call their own.

When they land jobs on a ranch in the Salinas Valley, the fulfillment of their dream seems to be within their grasp. But even George cannot guard Lennie from the provocations of a flirtatious woman, nor predict the consequences of Lennie's unswerving obedience to the things George taught him. "A thriller, a gripping tale . . . that you will not set down until it is finished. Steinbeck has touched the quick." —The New York Times
Publisher: Macmillan English Campus
ISBN-13: 9780230031067
ISBN-10: 0230031064
Published on 1/31/2009
Binding: Paperback

Book Reviews (12)

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I don't like this book very much. For instance, why oh, why? Why, did John Steinbeck leave an already-ish sad story to become sadder in the end. It's confusing a bit too. I fell like Steinbeck left the story too quickly to end it. The ending was a bit like, if you were older you would understand, but if you were younger I wouldn't read the book. I overall give it a 4 star rating, and recommend it to 8th graders and above.

Im going to start of very honest this is a very sad book and throughout the book you will definitely feel a lot of emotions. So two men Lennie and George are buddies the travel together and spend all their time together, but there is one problem Lennie and George are complete opposites, Lennie is like a giant baby and he completely underestimates how strong he is and George is a smart young man in search of a job. Finally one day they get a job and George tells Lennie to stay out of trouble and behave so they don't get kicked out of their jobs again, but Lennie accidentally kills someone, George is forced to do something at the end (I don't want to spoil it) and the book ends at a very sad note. But this is very good piece of literature and I would definitely read it again and again.

This is about two men going from job to job because Lennie keeps making bad choices and messing up. George is the brain and Lennie is unfortunately no much intelligent. George had to kill Lennie in order to save him because Lennie killed Curley's wife. Lennie also fought Curley.

The book I finished with my class is of Mice and men. The book is about these 2 people named Lennie and George who are trying to find a job. I thought it was a good book because George always got Lennie out of trouble and he took good care of him.

I decided to read this book because it was recommended by my class and we read it. The book is interesting because the characters are all different in there own why and you don't know what there gonna do next.

It is about these two guys who are best friends and work on a ranch, and protect each other. I really liked the book. I thought it was very interesting.

This book is about two friends, George and Lenny. They were planning to get there own farm. It was interesting because some of the parts in the book were dark.

Of Mice and Men: Summary Have you ever wondered what it would be like to work on a ranch during the Great Depression in the early 30’s? Then, Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck would be a good book for you. This book takes place in the Salinas Valley in California. The protagonists (or two main characters), are Lennie and George. They are two guys who wander around work on a ranch, then another, and another. This is what was called jumpers. Their dream is to own a farm for themselves. Sometimes the world isn't so nice though. One conflict is that Lennie is a special man, that has trouble remembering stuff, this is a problem that they face throughout the whole book. Another conflict is that Lennie is very strong, and not good with small animals. The turning point is when they find a farm that pays good money. They think by working there for a month, they can save up enough to get their land. Although things get heated between Lennie and the antagonist; Curley. This book is very fast paced and has a few swears, but overall, the message is that even the best intentions don’t always end well. Of Mice and Men is my favorite book and hope it will be yours too.

Although I do believe the ending of this book was unsatisfying, it is still a great book to read. I found the main characters extremely interesting in the way they take care of each other. One takes care of the physical protection and the other takes care of the brain work. I was also intrigued by the side characters and the setting descriptions. Through a third person point of view the author was still able to describe the thoughts and hopes of typical farmers, workers and even women during the Great depression. The author also gives fascinating insight onto the living conditions of not only average workers, but slave lives as well. I give this book four stars just because I did not enjoy the conclusion of the book. I believe the ending of the book was resolved yet unsettling and unsatisfying, not that the ending was bad just that I did not prefer it.

Although I was very unsatisfied with the ending, that I will not spoil, I did find some parts of the book interesting. The characters, both well developed and described, are compatible in the sense of taking care of one another. One takes care of the physical protection and the other takes care of the brain work. Aside from the character developements, I took interest in the setting descriptions. Every aspect of the main character's living spaces were deeply described. It gave phenomenal insight into the lives of workers during the Great Depression. Even from a third person point of view, what workers thought about and hoped for were explained. I rate this book a four because of the pitiful ending, not that it was bad, but that I do not prefer a resolved yet mysterious conclusion.

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